THANK YOU, DAD

This Father's Day, Isabel Turner, 31, reflects on how grateful she is for the first man in her life

- SARAH WHITELEY

Jumping onto the sofa, I handed my dad, Nigel, my favourite Rosie and Jim book and snuggled into his side. 'Read it to me again, I begged. Dad chuckled and opened the well-thumbed book. 'One more time,' he agreed.

Looking back, that was about the only time Dad sat still, when he was reading books to me when I was little. He worked long hours as a police officer until he retired but, even then, he got himself a job as a council worker inspecting pathways.

When he wasn't working, he was always outdoors, either on his motorbike with my mum Christine, or taking me and my brother, Adam, and sister, Naomi, for a picnic with our dog Rusty. We loved being outside with him too, always playing football in the back garden of our family home in Botcheston, Leicestershire. 'Let's see how many keepy-uppies you can do,' he'd urge.

He was a proud dad and always wanted the best for me, whether that was exams or boys! And when I met John, then 17, in 2007, Dad welcomed him into the family.